Page 54 of Built for Mercy

“I said I’m fine, Cal, okay?” I inhaled sharply, blinking as I realized… “Oh God, this is what I sounded like when you were drinking a lot, huh?”

She smiled sadly. “You’d think having people worry about you would feel good, right? Really, all it does it make you feel worse about yourself.”

Her statement hit deep. I swallowed, my hand idly circling my water glass. “Yeah.”

“On a brighter note, you look beautiful. It’s nice to see your hair like this. I haven’t seen you wear it naturally since we were on patrol together.”

I chuckled, remembering the days when we pulled long shifts together. “Feels like a lifetime ago,chula.”

Callie laughed. “It does, doesn’t it? How’s your mo—” She stopped, her eyes zeroing on something below my chin. I glanceddown, seeing a hickey that I didn’t realize Maverick left on me—would it have been last night or this morning? The dark purple love bite was noticeable only when my hair was pushed off my shoulder. “Soph. Who isthatfrom?”

Oh, right. The last she heard, I was avoiding Maverick so I didn’t catch feelings, and had no intention of ever seeing him again.

And… last night happened so fast…

Thankfully our server appeared and saved me. Callie ordered lemon ricotta crepes, but my stomach was still churning, so I ordered a fruit bowl. We both got mimosas and settled further into our booth.

“So…” she said expectantly.

I cleared my throat. “Maverick.”

Her eyes flew wide. “What? I thought—”

“I know, I know. But he showed up at my mom’s last night with flowers and looked so fucking good and literally begged me to go with him for the night. He was willing to leave me alone for good if I didn’t feel like there was something there and,” I sighed, “I couldn’t say no.”

A slow, dazzling smile crossed my best friend’s face, illuminating her from the inside out. “Oh my God, yes! And was there?”

I frowned. “Was there what?”

“Something there.”

I debated how much to disclose, but then realized she wouldn’t stop until she knew it all. “The short answer? Yes. Very much so. He makes me feel…” My eyes drifted to the ceiling as I searched for the words. “Understood. Seen. Valued. But, like, also cherished? He’s gentle and tender when he wants to be and rough in bed. He doesn’t treat me like I’m fragile or something to be handled, doesn’t think I’m too dark or expect me to beperfect. He’s introducing me to things I never thought I’d like and seems to see me for who I am.”

“Wow,” Callie breathed.

I laughed. “Wow? That’s all you have to say?”

“I just mean…” she hesitated and shook her head. “I’m glad you’re pursuing this. You deserve someone who isn’t going to think your baggage is too heavy to carry. And also someone who’s going to fulfill all those needs you didn’t know you had.” She gave me a knowing smile, as if to say she could relate, and I finally felt like I could not only confide in my best friend with my deeper secrets but also let go when it came to Mav.

25

Maverick

“You must be a fucking idiot if you’re actually suggesting that, Mav,” Paulie sneered as he stood with his back to the tinted window overlooking the empty club, hands on his hips.

“Yeah, I gotta agree with him on this one,” Duane agreed.

“It wasn’tmyidea,” I snapped. “It was hers.”

“That’s even worse! Why the fuck is she making suggestions like that for your business? Tell me you’re not dumb enough to incriminate yourself to a cop,” he said.

I rolled my eyes, neither confirming nor denying.

“How much did you tell her?” Paulie asked, putting two and two together.

“Enough so she’d understand what she was getting herself into. And yes, I told her weeks ago that this technically all belonged to her, if she wanted it.”

“Bro, youdumbass.”